My Little Box

When I was a teenager (just over 10 years ago) my parents placed me in a box. This box contained 4 walls called bounderies.  The walls were made of a very tough material and took years and years to construct and maintain.  They designed these walls through tough love, hard work, consistant living and prayer. 

When my mid-teen years hit, I tested these walls.  I tried again and again to step over them but each time I got close to the walls they would love me right back to where I needed to be.  Several times I did manage to overstep those boundaries but my parents  placed me back into the box with the walls.  Sometimes they placed me gently, but sometimes (due to my own actions) they had to be forceful.

I hated my box.  I wanted so desperately to get out of my box and join the other kids at the mall or at a party or my boyfriend's house.  I wanted to fit in and be somebody.  But little did I know then that I already was somebody and that this dreadful box was creating somebody better.  I was being transformed into a shallow-minded teenager into a successful member of society. 

I am 29 years old now.  Due to my box I have learned how to make decisions.  I have learned how to make a mistake and learn from it.  I know now how to be a devoted wife and a stable parent.  I know how to hold a job and to take on leadership responsibilities.  I know how to be strong and stand up for things I believe in and stand up for those I love.

I am a God-fearing woman.  I hold daily conversations with the Lord Almighty.  I thank Him often for the boundaries I was given.  If it were not for those boundaries and the sweat it took from my parents to keep me within those boundaries I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that my life would not be what it is today. 

I have 3 children.  And I am building boxes.  I know how hard it will be to keep my kids inside these walls.  But I will fight for my kids just as my parents fought for me.  And I am aware that sometimes I will have to fight with them if it means to fight for them. 

Proud to be an American?

It's not often that I get angry.  But I'm angry now.  I am angry at society.  Just this past week we've cut the jobs our teachers and are now looking at our firefighters & police officers.  Guns in elementary schools, knife fights in middle schools, pregnancy in high schools, children are being allowed to sit during the pledge, and so much more.

I have worked in the child care industry for almost a decade.  Nine years ago I didn't have an issue with respect like I do now.  It surprises me that kids now-a-days have no idea what it means to say ma'am or sir.  They are bold and a lot (not all) have a strong sense of entitlement. 

I have strange men posted on my wall so that we can identify the 4 sexual predators within the 2 mile radius of our house.  My children had to be taught that there are men that look for children to hurt and I coudn't answer their "why" question. 

Inmates get free counceling and college courses.  I have had such a hard time getting to school myself because I'm terrified of the cost!  And how much is counceling now?  Wow.  What would happen to the divorce rate if it didn't cost an arm & a leg to get a good marriage councelor. 

And speaking of divorce...If you're looking for a quick divorce go to Wal-Mart & you can get software to download all the paperwork you need for a surprisingly low cost.  Glad they made that convenient.  Or why not just take the 'trouble' out of it all and just not get married.  Just live together it's the same thing, right?  (Please sense my sarcasm). 

And how 'bout them polititians?  Huh?  How many volunteered to forfeit their paychecks while debating on taking from our soldiers?  One.  Uno. That's it.  Just one. I would write a book if I commented anymore on this issue.

One of my favorite things to do as a kid was to sit in the living room around evening time and watch TV with the family.  There's not a single thing that is kid-appropriate after Wheel of Fortune.  There are cuss words in commercials and in the titles of the shows.  Sexually explicit inuindos and bloody crime scenes flood our TV screens. 

I will always always be proud to be an American.  I love my veteran.  I have many family members in the military both active and veterans.  I still cry when I hear the National Anthem, I smile when I see a flag waving in the wind.  I turn my radio up when I hear Lee Greenwood sing "Proud to be an American".   But there are things that happen in America that just make me mad.  I am fearful for my children and wonder what kind of future we are raising.  If we're so corrupt and full of non sense now, how will it be in 20 years?  It's a scarry thought.